Just five weeks into its 24-show engagement with FOX Sports Net, Bellator Fighting Championships has set a new standard for MMA programming on the network, outperforming the ratings of other previous MMA shows on FSN by a remarkable 46 percent among the coveted “men 25 to 54” demographic.

In addition, Bellator has seen its own ratings increase dramatically since making its FSN debut on April 8th with Bellator 13. Total viewership numbers for last Thursday’s Bellator 17 show were up 184 percent from the debut show four weeks earlier.

“As the Bellator tournament moves forward and the great fights keep happening, we are really excited to see the buzz building around our brand as more and more viewers tune in each ,” said Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “We are proud of the viewership numbers that we’ve been drawing to our weekly shows and are confident that our ratings will continue to grow during the remaining seven weeks of Bellator Season 2 and during our twelve Bellator Season 3 shows beginning in August.”

In addition to the 46-percent increase among men ages 25 to 54, Bellator’s ratings are also up 51 percent among all viewers’ ages 25 to 54 when compared to the three MMA shows that previously aired on FSN: M1 Fighting Championships, Affliction and the International Fight League.

Bellator veteran Sergio Da Silva has been arrested in connection with a bank robbery that took place in New York just a few days ago. According to a report from TMZ, Da Silva was arrested after allegread news >>

Mixed martial artist Sergio Da Silva, who competed at Bellator 180 in June, reportedly was arrested Thursday after allegedly robbing a bank in New York City. According to TMZ Sports, Da Silva is accuread news >>